Eskenazi Health held a ribbon cutting late last week to unveil its newest health care complex on the east side of Indianapolis. Republican gubernatorial candidate Jamie Reitenour says local television stations should correct the “injustice” of excluding her from primary debates. Indiana officials say the state’s overall economic outlook remains strong, even as the state’s labor force has shrunk four consecutive months. Indianapolis non-profit Public Advocates in Community re-Entry assists people...
Mar 25, 2024•8 min
A new regular segment for the show called The Checkup, from Side Effects Public Media. After months of controversy, an all-girls charter school is one step closer to opening in Washington Township. More than 50 new apartments are open to people in need of permanent supportive housing in Indianapolis. A lack of oversight from the federal government has made labeling for PFAS confusing. Want to go deeper on the stories you hear on WFYI News Now? Visit wfyi.org/news and follow us on social media to...
Mar 22, 2024•10 min
State Senator Jean Breaux has died, the Senate Democratic caucus announced yesterday. A new housing program for young adults called Jake's Place is up and running on Indianapolis’ west side. A lawsuit from Attorney General Todd Rokita alleges seven companies conspired to raise insulin prices by 1,000 percent in the last decade. Indiana and 44 other states have released their initial plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions with the help of a federal grant. Medical providers across the country ar...
Mar 21, 2024•7 min
Governor Eric Holcomb signed a bill that limits how Indiana’s public access counselor interprets public records and open meetings laws. On July 1st Indiana establishments can offer happy hours for the first time in decades. Democratic State Senator Jean Breaux announced she’s stepping away from her political position due to ongoing health issues. A new federal grant will help fund a project in Anderson that aims to reconnect communities that were divided by transportation infrastructure decades ...
Mar 20, 2024•9 min
People incarcerated in Indiana state prisons might soon have access to financial aid to pay for Ivy Tech Community College classes. Governor Eric Holcomb vetoed a bill that would define and ban antisemitism in state public education institutions. Republican gubernatorial candidate Brad Chambers unveiled a 10-point economic plan yesterday that highlights tax reform, child care, entrepreneurship and housing. Read or Restrict, a new documentary film from WFYI, explores how the movement to remove ce...
Mar 19, 2024•9 min
Author and writer Dan Wakefield passed away last week in Indianapolis. Construction season has officially kicked off - Indianapolis will spread its funding across a number of projects, including roads, bridges, storm water and trails. A lawsuit between the city of Gary and some in the gun industry is likely over after Governor Eric Holcomb signed a bill into law Friday torpedoing the suit. The governor also signed legislation last week that will establish requirements for how health plans pay ou...
Mar 18, 2024•6 min
A new report shows Indiana has only thirty four affordable and available rental units for every one hundred extremely low-income households in the state. Governor Eric Holcomb signed a bill into law this week that will allow more students to participate in robotics competitions. Governor Holcomb also signed Senate Bill 202, which requires professors at Indiana’s public universities to promote “intellectual diversity” in the classroom in order to keep tenure protections. The governor signed legis...
Mar 15, 2024•7 min
A new housing project is being planned for older residents on the far east side. The Blue Line rapid transit system has been recommended to receive roughly $140 million in support from the federal government. Indy Summer Learning Labs is hiring for their summer instructional programs. David Umulis discusses how he’ll lead Purdue in Indianapolis through its split with Indiana University, as IUPUI officially becomes two. Want to go deeper on the stories you hear on WFYI News Now? Visit wfyi.org/ne...
Mar 14, 2024•8 min
The City of Indianapolis announced yesterday it received roughly twelve million dollars to support homelessness and housing initiatives. The governor signed a bill Monday that requires hospitals to ensure Medicaid members have the option during a delivery visit to get a long-acting reversible contraceptive — also known as a LARC. Lawmakers passed a flurry of bills this year that will have a wide impact on education in Indiana, including efforts to promote work-based learning and advance policies...
Mar 13, 2024•9 min
Indy Parks will offer free, public Wi-Fi at several parks across the city. The construction of some of the most historic buildings in Indianapolis is the focus of a new archival photo project. Governor Eric Holcomb signed a bill that critics say violates federal law when it comes to removing people from the voter rolls. Gov. Holcomb signed a controversial reading retention bill into law that holds back nearly all third graders who fail the state’s reading proficiency exam. Indianapolis welcomed ...
Mar 12, 2024•9 min
Republican leaders said before the start of session they wanted it to be a quiet one, focused on small tweaks to existing policies. A bill on its way to the governor’s desk would expand several state education programs and increase funding for some students. Schools must release students for religious education under a bill headed to the governor’s desk. Legislation headed to the governor would establish a fund for research into psilocybin and its potential as a treatment for mental health issue...
Mar 11, 2024•9 min
Lake Michigan and the rest of the Great Lakes haven’t had much ice this winter, and less ice can spell bad news for Indiana’s lakeshore towns. It’s now up to Governor Eric Holcomb whether to sign a bill into law that will restrict his power, and that of his successors, from extending statewide disaster emergency declarations. The number of young people between the ages of ten and nineteen who died of an overdose has more than doubled from 2019 to 2021, and continues to rise — some say school pre...
Mar 08, 2024•8 min
The operations of Change Healthcare are still on hold as it works through a cyberattack that happened more than ten days ago. How can older adults and retirees efficiently and effectively file taxes in Indiana? Indiana’s public access counselor could see a significant shift in duties under a House Bill that now heads to Gov. Eric Holcomb’s desk. Indiana is expanding its revenge pornography law to include digitally-generated or altered images. Some teenagers will be able to work later into the ev...
Mar 07, 2024•7 min
Politicians and educators agree that the large number of Indiana students missing school is a serious problem - there’s less consensus on what policies could help. Lawmakers want to get pregnant people who have been charged with drug crimes into treatment earlier. Adult websites would have to use stricter age verification to operate in Indiana under legislation headed to the governor’s desk. Another piece of legislation headed to the governor aims to make Indiana’s disaster relief program easier...
Mar 06, 2024•6 min
The Indianapolis City County Council held its full monthly meeting last night. Pet stores will be able to sell dogs anywhere in Indiana, even in communities where those sales are banned by local ordinances, under a bill Governor Eric Holcomb signed into law yesterday. The Indiana Libertarian Party chose its 2024 nominees for governor, lieutenant governor and U.S. Senate this weekend. An amendment to a wide-reaching fiscal bill could make Indiana the 30th state to eliminate retail sales tax on fe...
Mar 05, 2024•6 min
The standardized assessment known as IREAD-3, or the Indiana Reading Evaluation and Determination, will be given to all third graders and most second graders during a testing window open March 4–15. A Senate committee approved a bill Thursday that would increase access to postpartum, long-acting reversible contraceptives, also known as LARCs, for people on Medicaid. Language to disqualify candidates for Indiana attorney general if they face certain sanctions to their law license was removed from...
Mar 04, 2024•7 min
A bill that would effectively kill the Indianapolis Blue Line died suddenly Thursday after a compromise was reached between the state legislature and local leaders. The higher education bill that academics say guts tenure protections heads to the desk of Gov. Eric Holcomb. Indianapolis Public Schools will start using electric school buses as part of a new partnership meant to decrease fossil fuel usage. A Medicaid program called Attendant Care has been a lifeline for families with disabled membe...
Mar 01, 2024•10 min
The Indianapolis City Market is set to close for renovations on Friday. The historic market will not reopen until 2026 as the entire city block prepares for redevelopment. A new resource hub aims to make it easier for people to access food assistance. The Food Service Resource Hub - or FRSH, will offer both emergency food supplies and connect people with longer term resources. Southern Indiana egg farmer John Rust was removed from the Republican primary ballot for the U.S. Senate in a unanimous ...
Feb 29, 2024•9 min
A federal appeals court yesterday allowed Indiana's ban on gender-affirming care to go into effect, removing a temporary injunction a judge issued last year. A House committee voted yesterday to approve a bill effectively killing the Indianapolis Blue Line, the city’s third bus rapid transit system. The Indiana Election Commission yesterday voted to deny an effort to keep Former President Donald Trump off of the Indiana primary ballot. Earlier this month, the Indiana Supreme Court vacated a case...
Feb 28, 2024•9 min
At the end of last week the Indiana Department of Health confirmed the first measles case in the state since 2019. Regulations of home-based child care would be loosened by legislation approved yesterday by the Indiana Senate. The Senate passed a bill that simplifies nursing instructor requirements and eliminates a barrier for nurses from other countries to work in Indiana. It’s unclear if a bill to change the definition of toxic PFAS in Indiana will move forward. Some groups say government regu...
Feb 27, 2024•7 min
A guilty verdict came Friday for a man charged with fatally shooting Indianapolis police officer Breann Leath in 2020. A program that teaches groups how to create spaces that promote safety is open to residents. Legislation that would change the way schools and families settle conflicts over special education services failed to advance in the Indiana Statehouse. WFYI’s Zak Cassel sat down with IndyStar investigative reporter Kristine Phillips to learn about recent legislation related to transgen...
Feb 26, 2024•10 min
Republicans want to make Indiana’s law banning sanctuary cities enforceable with a bill headed to the House floor. Indiana schools would be required to release students for religious education if requested regardless of the student’s academics. Adult websites will need stronger age verification measures under a bill headed to the Indiana House floor. A bill that university faculty say would functionally remove tenure passed the House Committee on Education on a party-line vote. The Senate passed...
Feb 23, 2024•7 min
High-school seniors across Indiana are invited to College Goal Sunday, an event to help students and families fill out the application for federal student aid. Researchers from Indiana University School of Medicine developed a blood test for people with schizophrenia and related psychotic disorders. A Senate committee yesterday unanimously passed a bill that would define and ban antisemitism in state public education institutions. Indiana lawmakers proposed legislation that would create addition...
Feb 22, 2024•9 min
Indianapolis’ planned economic enhancement district, or EED, will not be repealed. A House committee yesterday heard testimony on a bill to put a moratorium on dedicated bus lanes. Several hundred abuse victims who are part of a large settlement with the Boy Scouts of America could get access to more money under a bill approved by a Senate committee yesterday. More and more rural hospitals across the country have stopped delivering babies in recent years - some rural hospitals have found ways to...
Feb 21, 2024•9 min
The completion of a key interstate puzzle piece is in sight with the last section of I-69 in Marion and Johnson counties. A yearly look at the wellbeing of Hoosier children came out yesterday. Candidates for Indiana attorney general would be disqualified from running if they face certain sanctions from the state Supreme Court under language added to a bill yesterday. More people are seeking vasectomies following the overturning of Roe v. Wade — and Planned Parenthood centers want to meet that de...
Feb 20, 2024•6 min
Former President Donald Trump’s ability to appear on Indiana’s primary ballot has been challenged. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration greenlit a new drug to help people with severe food allergies. The federal government has sent out letters to the governors of forty-four states this month, including Indiana, calling for them to improve efficiency for food assistance applications. Every winter Indianapolis roadways take a beating, and the Department of Public Works is tasked to repair hundreds...
Feb 19, 2024•8 min
The popular art fair BUTTER that showcases the work of Black artists returns to Indianapolis for All-Star weekend. It’s looking more likely that the Indiana Supreme Court won’t allow southern Indiana egg farmer John Rust to be on the Republican primary ballot for U.S. Senate. Obstetrics care closures in Indiana contribute to the state’s high rates of maternal and infant mortality. A bill that allows unlicensed child care providers to serve more children for more hours each week easily advanced o...
Feb 16, 2024•7 min
Despite an increase in homebuying in Marion County, racial inequalities in homeownership persist. The Pacers Bikeshare program will offer free rides during NBA All-Star Weekend. A play celebrating a pivotal event in Indianapolis Black history is this weekend, to coincide with festivities for the NBA All-Star weekend. Preventative screenings like colonoscopies are supposed to be free for patients, but a regulatory loophole leaves some patients on the hook for hundreds of dollars or more. Want to ...
Feb 15, 2024•9 min
It’s all hands on deck as Indianapolis gets ready to host the 2024 NBA All-Star game. Indiana University Indianapolis's new chancellor and executive vice president Latha Ramchand started work this week. Listeners want to know how Hoosiers with child support questions can find more information and resources. Attorney General Todd Rokita’s office is asking parents to submit complaints of potentially inappropriate materials in their schools - the office says it’s received evidence of indoctrination...
Feb 14, 2024
Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett yesterday announced a new chief of police for the city's police department. The governor signed a controversial bill yesterday that further reduces protections for the state’s wetlands. Whether southern Indiana farmer John Rust will appear on the U.S. Senate Republican primary ballot this spring is now in the hands of the state Supreme Court. Taxpayers are on the hook for damages and legal bills after a woman was arrested because of false statements made by an Indi...
Feb 13, 2024•7 min
